


Crossed Hearts

by flash0flight



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Iron Man 3, M/M, PTSD, SteveTony, Stony - Freeform, Superhusbands, TW: Nightmares, im3 based, prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-06
Updated: 2013-05-06
Packaged: 2017-12-10 14:13:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/786965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flash0flight/pseuds/flash0flight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nothing’s been the same since New York, and Steve and Tony are struggling to work out the kinks, specifically Tony’s nightmares.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crossed Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> Written purely for my friend Nat who has been having a lot of nightmare effected Tony feelings lately.

_I can’t sleep. And when I do, I have nightmares._

Tony’s words bounce around his head as Steve paces back and forth through the room, waiting. Stealing glances at the door every few minutes, only to keep pacing. Hoping. Impatient and patient at the same time. Anxious. He’s known for a while that Tony’s been having trouble, that he’s not sleeping, that he’s not coping. And Steve isn’t surprised, not after everything they saw in New York. Not after the aliens and the battles and the fallout. Not after Tony himself had ended up in another dimension. Not after he’d died in a universe he had no idea about, all in the name of saving the city.

Steve can remember how fast his view of Tony Stark had changed, but he never imagined he would be here now. In Malibu, living in Tony’s mansion on the side of a cliff, working with SHIELD and trying to get back into a life of working, of protecting people, but somehow struggling to maintain some kind of relationship with Tony of all people.

There’s no where else he’d rather be, Steve knows that much.

But that doesn’t make it any easier to face Tony’s nightmares. Not when nothing seems to work, nothing but hiding away in his workshop tinkering with toys upon toys. Building who knows what. Steve’s seen the new suit, he knows to some extent just what Tony’s doing to himself. But he also knows how much Tony does while Steve is working, while Steve is catching some shut eye, while Steve is away.

If Tony doesn’t have work to keep him busy, he’ll lose his mind to the nightmares. Steve knows that. It’s why he works so hard; to avoid falling into the same mess of terrors in his sleep.

The door finally creeks open and Tony peers inside, his eyes blown wide from working too much, from staring at screens and working on his suit, mind still running faster than it should be. Crunching numbers. Focusing on anything that holds equations and technology and piecing together yet another suit.

“ Had another breakthrough? “ Steve asks quietly as he reaches out for Tony, waiting for the man to come to him rather than swooping down on him and forcing him to bed. And it takes a few seconds, but eventually Tony steps into the room, nudging the door shut behind him before heading right for Steve. He doesn’t take the blond’s hand, but he stops just in front of Steve, so close that the soldier can feel the heat radiating from Tony’s body.

“ Thought I’d give that sleep thing a try. Heard it was a big deal. “ Tony mumbles tiredly as he burrows his head against Steve’s chest, and Steve takes the invitation immediately, arms encircling the man. One hand buries itself in Tony’s hair, fingers stroking through the soft strands, while the other arm curls around Tony’s waist, keeping him close and safe, giving into that instinct, that need to protect that Steve has always had.

“ Sounds like a good idea, if you ask me. “ Steve can’t help but chuckle a little as he presses a kiss into Tony’s hair. It takes a few moments of silence, of Steve holding Tony and Tony simply being held, but the smaller man finally leans away, heading for the wardrobe so he can get out of his undersuit, and Steve watches him with a slight frown creasing his forehead. It’s been days since he’s seen Tony in anything but the undersuit, and he can’t help but wonder just how tired Tony actually is.

Though, they’ll find out soon enough.

\--

It had taken so much care and whispers and carefully dropped kisses to coax Tony to sleep, but Steve had finally managed it. Not long after, he’d dropped off himself, drifting away into a light, steady sleep.

Light enough to wake up when Tony starts murmuring in his sleep, tense and panicked and desperate, so desperate, and Steve is quick to shake off the last holds of sleep as he pushes himself up, leaning over Tony’s shoulder to see his face pulled into an expression of pure fear. Steve can’t wake him, he can’t drag Tony out of a nightmare without doing some damage, but he can’t help but rest a hand on Tony’s shoulder and-- god, his muscles are pulled so tight and tense that all Steve wants to do is wake him up. And he can’t.

“ Tony, c’mon, hey wake up, come on sweetheart. “ He murmurs softly into Tony’s ear as the brunette keeps mumbling and groaning, letting out small gasps of shock and terror here and there, each sound chipping away at Steve’s heart bit by bit. And he knows this is how he is, he knows this is what he looks like when his stress and strain gets the better of him, when he has his own nightmares, when his PTSD gets the better of him. The only difference is Steve wakes up alone, more often than not, with Tony still in the workshop for most of the night.

He’s just glad Tony doesn’t have to face this alone.

Just as it seems Tony might wake up, something harsh and sharp and unexpected grips onto his shoulder, and despite his super-soldier strength, it manages to pull him onto his back, and Steve finds himself staring up at the new suit Tony’s designed. The one that can move and function remotely, and his mind is suddenly racing as every instinct yells danger, tells him to fight back, tells him to get the hell out of this before it’s too late and the suit hurts him-- “ Tony! “ The yell leaves Steve before he can help himself, the suit’s grip on him tightening to an almost painful point.

Tony’s weight shifts beside him, and when Steve glances to his side Tony is already upright, gesturing towards the suit, and it lets Steve go instantly, stepping back. Quick commands on Tony’s part shut the tech down, leaving it silent and dormant, and Steve hauls himself up on the bed, chest heaving as he struggles to catch his breath, gaze shifting back and forth from the suit to Tony.

“ That’s not supposed to happen. “ Is the first thing Tony manages to spit out between his own laboured breaths, and Steve’s eyes finally lock onto Tony’s. Just as Steve is trying to choose his words to explain just how _dangerous_ that was, he sees one thing in Tony’s eyes.

Fear.

“ Tony-- “

“ Just don’t-- don’t go, alright? “

Steve’s never heard him sound so afraid of anything before, never heard him sound as though he needs someone more than he does right now, and all of Steve’s fight-or-flight instincts begin to die down, pushed away by the sight and sound of just how horrified Tony is. Whatever that was, whatever had just happened, Tony had never expected it. He’d never plan something like that.

Whatever Tony was doing to himself down in that workshop was taking an effect, but in the wrong way. And now it’s mixing with those nightmares Tony’s so scared of.

“ Hey, c’mere-- “ Steve reaches out carefully for the second time that night, pausing a little as his fingertips touch Tony’s sweat-slick skin. But Tony doesn’t move away, doesn’t flinch or second guess anything; he simply collapses against Steve that that slight touch, still taking deep breaths to try and calm him down, and Steve can feel his skin trembling. “ S’okay, I’m not going anywhere. “

“ I must have called it in my sleep-- the nightmares-- “ Tony mumbles hopelessly against Steve’s chest, his breathing starting to slow down, steadier, more stable.

“ I know, it’s okay, I know. I-- we’ll figure it out, okay? “ Steve leans back against the head of the bed, stretching his legs out in front of him so Tony can comfortably lean against him, giving him a chance to seek whatever comfort it is he needs. Waking up from a nightmare that severe is bad enough, Steve knows it first hand. Knowing a nightmare like that had called his very own creation in, that said creation had threatened him like that? Steve can only imagine how that feels.

“ Gotta play with the coding.. Figure it out.. “ Tony sighs, his breath hot against the skin of Steve’s neck, and Steve can’t help but hush him softly, pressing a kiss to Tony’s forehead.

“ You will, you’ll figure it out. You’re gonna fix it, Tony. “ Because no one is better at fixing things than Tony is, even if he hasn’t figured out how to fix himself yet. But that’s what Steve is there for, to fix the hurts Tony can’t fix himself. Or to try, at least. And there are plenty of hurts left over from New York, from Afghanistan, even from his childhood. So many hurts that may never heal.

But they’ve gotta try.


End file.
